“Democrat Party members in Michigan were eager on Friday to match words with deeds by compensating Apple for the money it spent on flying them to California for a technology demo,” Aidan Malley reports for AppleInsider.
Malley reports, “The gesture was an attempt to quickly squelch the controversy generated by the trip, whose partial Apple funding implied that the computer company had tried to buy influence and win an educational contract that would have reportedly seen $36 million in iPods delivered to every Michigan child.”
Malley reports, “Representative Tim Melton was adamant that the proposal had never been meaningful, and that repaying Apple the $1,702 it had cost each of the three Democrats who made the trip was simply a way of proving the party’s honesty. ‘The only reason we’re paying for it is to end this public perception that something is misguided,’ Melton said. ‘There was never a plan to provide an iPod for every child in the state of Michigan.'”
Full article which contains info about an iPod supplier bust and new Apple Retail Store concepts here.
Related article:
Detroit News calls plan for iPod for every school child in Michigan ‘hare-brained’ – April 09, 2007
“Representative Tim Melton was adamant that the proposal had never been meaningful, and that repaying Apple the $1,702 it had cost each of the three Democrats who made the trip was simply a way of proving the party’s honesty.”
Does he mean that the Michigan tax-payers paid for this, or did it come out THIER pockets? Somehow I think it was the tax-payers.
Crooks.
“democrat” party? what the f*ck is the “democrat” party? doesn’t anyone know the f*cking difference between an adjective and a noun anymore? or has frank luntz’s neoconservative dictionary replaced webster’s and oxford? jesus.
Tax payers don’t need to pay for students to have iPods period.
Will the Detroit Free Press
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/
article?AID=/20070411/NEWS06/704110305
print a retraction? If so, will it be a four-point, two-line “correction” buried in the truss ads?
Was the Detroit Free Press paid off by Microsoft?
Is the Detroit Free Press owned by the cult of war-monger Big Oil crooked-election thugs squatting in the White House?
Will it be only Republicans who refuse to believe that an iPod in every pot is a lie, so it doesn’t matter anyway?
I am a teacher and I am totally against kids having iPods in class, especially in my classroom. Just what I need… More distractions for the students to not listen to my lecture material.
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Macintosh Sauce said: “I am a teacher and I am totally against kids having iPods in class, especially in my classroom. Just what I need… More distractions for the students to not listen to my lecture material. “
I hope your joking; it would be really, really sad if you weren’t.
On odd chance you’re not joking, research ‘Podcast in education’.
Oh, back to the topic: Why does every f*sking thing in America have to be political, Left Vs. Right, Dems Vs. Republicans? What the happened to One nation under God? Just wondering.
macca: Sheesh! Are you from the Swear Party? Learn to articulate your message without resorting to faux frustration over how others aren’t up to your level of smarts.
I am an “in the middle” guy… might lean a little left… but this was just bad. So, they were trying to screw Apple, then after they caught hell, they are now shafting the local tax payer (assuming they did not take the cash out of their pockets to pay for it.). That is just plain wrong and I hope these people get voted out next go-round. 2,000 per person to Apple is almost nothing, but really, it is the fact that if any one of us pulled this, we would be going to court for fraud and any number of other charges.
I really cannot see a defense for this other then “we wanted a free vacation on Apple.” and playing that to a group of MS lovers. But I doubt it, just another group of corrupt, wanting a free ride politicians claiming to be for the people, when they are only looking out for themselves.
End Rant.
The Dude abides.
In the case the the DNC is paying for it now, then it is the people who donated to the DNC to get democrats promoted and elected that are being shafted… still not right. A principle thing.
The Dude.
macca, you’re pretty quick to show us your knowledge regarding grammar but you seem to have difficulty with your ‘shift’ key.
What is it with so many people these days that they cannot use the shift key? Do they think it is cool to not capitalize words where correct grammar and spelling call for it or is it just laziness?
http://mytop-in.net/go/030207160042.html //
geeze.
“come see a demo of our products. We’ll fly you out, give you a company tour.”
Thats marketing. would anyone be crying is Apple had flown these people to Misouri or Newark NJ? I really don’t see mucg wrong with this.
I’m not against every school kid in Michigan having a iPod…
…as it can be a viable and valuable training aid.
I just think that the present bills need to paid for first, the state of the local economy looked at, and with surpluses of revenue the option of a iPod for every schoolchild looked at, not beforehand. Else use a less expensive option, like books or in room video or dvd’s that kids can take home.
“$1,702 it had cost each of the three Democrats who made the trip”
EACH of the three cost 1700 to get from Michigan to California? I sure hope this is a mistake and they meant 1700 for everyone. What did they do, take first class, dine on caviar, rent a Hummer and stay at Club Med?
Politicians.